1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a device for forming a closure in the end of a tubing.
2. Prior Art
There are many instances in medicine where it is desirable to implant a catheter within the body of a patient. The catheter may be used for delivering drugs into an implanted dispensing reservoir or it may be used for introducing or removing a fluid from within an inflatable article affixed in fluid communication with the open end thereof. It is of primary importance that a fluid within the tubing is not permitted to leak from the tubing even when considerable internal or external translumenal pressure is exerted on the wall of the tubing such as may occur during capsular contracture when such a tubing is surgically implanted. To prevent such undesired fluid transfer into or out of the tubing, the open end of the tubing must be sealed prior to closing the wound after implantation of the tube within the body.
Various techniques have been employed to close the open end of a tubing, such as a catheter, wherein the lumen of the tubing may need to be accessed at a later date. One such technique is the folding over or kinking of the open end of the tube and securing it in a kinked position with a non-absorbable suture. Alternatively, a clamp may be placed on the open terminus of the tubing to prevent leakage from therewithin. Upon excision, the clamp may be removed to gain access to, and establish fluid communication with, the distal end of the tubing. In many instances, the tubing is quite small; having an inner diameter of only 1-2 mm. A plug dimensioned for intraoperative insertion into the open end of such a catheter provides a challenge to even the most dexterous surgeon. A conventional plug designed to fit within the lumen of an implanted tubing would have an outer diameter of only approximately 1-2 mm, and would be difficult to grasp, hold and manipulate and easy to drop or lose in the operative field. Further, such plugs may be easily removed by internal pressure build-up within the tubing such as occurs with mammary prostheses during the well known phenomena of capsular contracture wherein the body forms a fibrous capsule around a fluid-filled inflatable member attached to the distal end of the inflation tubing. Following implantation, the capsule subsequently contracts to compress the inflatable article. For these reasons it is desirable to provide a plug for sealing the open end of a tubing which is easy to insert intraoperatively.